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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23290738">I Fell Down and Saw Him Rise</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lil_Redhead/pseuds/Lil_Redhead'>Lil_Redhead</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Shirbert Oneshot + Drabble Collection [23]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery, Anne with an E (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>(even though there's nothing to fix), 3x10 Fix It, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Romantic Fluff, Yet another fic of cleared misunderstandings and first kisses</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-03-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-03-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 11:08:49</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,980</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23290738</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lil_Redhead/pseuds/Lil_Redhead</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"Gilbert Blythe was bounding up the path, aided by the wind at his back. He looked wild, dressed without his jacket and sweating through his white shirt. Anne’s mind raced - what could he possibly be here for?"</p><p>Or: Gilbert writes no letter and Anne doesn't speak with Winifred. An alternate take on the renowned 3x10 scene.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gilbert Blythe &amp; Anne Shirley, Gilbert Blythe/Anne Shirley</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Shirbert Oneshot + Drabble Collection [23]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1075275</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>61</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>395</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>I Fell Down and Saw Him Rise</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello friends! I hope you are all safe and healthy during such a stressful time. This prompt was given to me by an anon on tumblr, and I LOVED it. I went full "feel-good" on this one, so saddle up. (also I edited while I was writing so pls forgive mistakes). </p><p>This wee story is dedicated to @the_lazy_eye who left me the SWEETEST comment a couple days ago. Thank you again, love!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Anne did not expect to enjoy Charlottetown as much as she did. It was a far cry from home to be true. Yet, it could not be denied that the city air smelled enticingly of possibility and promise. As Anne marched down the streets in her new gown under the shade of her parasol, she felt more and more like a real lady. Gentlefolk she met eyes with no longer looked down their noses in snobby disgust. Instead, some nodded politely and others offered appreciative smiles at her refined attire. The golden fields of Avonlea and the perfume of their wildflowers still followed Anne in her heart, and she lived along with—not in spite of—its memory. Her soul was wide and an adventure was hers for the taking. </p><p>Then, Anne’s eyes fell upon something that made her heart drop to her stomach.</p><p>The sight of Winifred Rose was a harsh dousing of cold water. The calm of the day was broken and the early autumn air became bitterly frigid. The blonde beauty appeared as genteel as ever she did, standing with a sort of guarded, sophisticated expression on her face. She watched as her servants loaded her belongings into a carriage, though something far away occupied her gaze, and she hadn’t noticed Anne. </p><p>Anne paused. Should she venture forward and say hello? Was Gilbert here? Her heart sank at the thought of him. If Winifred was loading her things into a carriage, did that mean that Gilbert was leaving? Leaving <em> today? </em> </p><p>It was then that one of the servants noticed the pale redhead standing in the gateway and whispered a few words to Winifred. Immediately, she fixed a sharp glare at Anne with such palpable disdain that it made Anne step back. Her grip on her parasol tightened. Had Winifred always hated her so much? Maybe Gilbert said something, told Winifred about the letter he’d received from Anne? If Gilbert despised her as much as Winifred seemed to, she wasn’t sure what she’d do. </p><p><em> Just let it go, Anne, </em> she told herself. <em> Let </em> <em> him </em> <em> go.  </em></p><p>More dignified than she felt, Anne opened her parasol and rested it on her shoulder. She gave a polite smile, a short nod, and continued walking down the street. </p><p>The Blackmore House was a welcome sight. Anne’s walk home had been overwhelmingly occupied by thoughts of Gilbert as the last of her hopes tried desperately not to be crushed forever. The optimistic side of her, the side that could so easily picture Gilbert appearing out of thin air and declaring his undying love, needed to be quieted. Soon, the Avonlea girls would be home to ease her thoughts, and in turn, soothe the dull ache of her heart. </p><p>Her gaze fell down to the flowerbed along the edge of the house. The familiar blooms had begun to wear thin and pale with dryness. </p><p>“My poor friends, you’ve been neglected,” Anne murmured softly. She took the watering pail from the porch step and began to sprinkle what was left overtop the soil. “I admit, I’ve also been feeling a little like I’ve lost my vibrant colors. Still, you all are quite fortunate. How lovely it must be to entwine your roots with those beside you, to never be separated from them. I hope you’ll all enjoy this bit of rain.” </p><p>Above her, a cottony cloud split down the middle and drenched Anne and her flowers in sunlight. She swore it tasted like honey and sugar on her lips. </p><p>“Some sunshine will do all of us some good,” she continued. “It’s hard to linger on things that pain us if we’re sitting in the sun together, even if those things are wont to hurt excruciatingly.” </p><p>Caressing soft petals, Anne felt herself teetering on the precipice from which there was no return. If she opened up her mind to thoughts of Gilbert, she wouldn’t be able to stop. More and more, she was unsure if her heart would survive the onslaught, regardless of all her words to Diana that had been of healing and moving on.</p><p>Yet, before she could venture down the path to thoughts of unruly, night-sky hair and melodiously deep laughter, she heard a pair of footprints race up the front path. Her head shot up, the sight before her causing her jaw to drop. </p><p>Gilbert Blythe was bounding up the path, aided by the wind at his back. He looked wild, dressed without his jacket and sweating through his white shirt. Anne’s mind raced. What could he <em> possibly </em>be here for? Had he heard that she was living in Charlottetown and come to see her before leaving for Paris? </p><p>Anne rose from where she knelt by the flowerbed, and when Gilbert finally saw her, he stumbled forward and jolted to a halt. His eyebrows were knit in a strange expression, causing a wave of self consciousness to come over Anne. She could dress in beautiful azure gowns and curl her hair into any fashion she wanted, but Gilbert had known her at her worst. He wasn’t likely to be distracted by the new change—she was the same Anne he’d always known. </p><p>“Anne—” he choked out, but anything else he wanted to say was caught in his throat. He was dissolving before her, his gaze desperate and his appearance disheveled beyond imagination. A tremor shook his hands and a pang of dread shot through Anne.  She rushed up to him, searching his eyes and finding only desperation and something akin to wonder.</p><p>“Gilbert? What are you doing here?!” she exclaimed. Gilbert gaped, but no words came out. His eyes roved over her, a shaky sigh leaving his lips and grazing her cheeks. “What’s wrong? Is Delly ill or—” </p><p>“I’m in love with you.” Anne was stunned to silence, her cheeks burned scarlet and her world flipped upside down on its axis. Gilbert himself was caught off guard by his own admission, but he pressed on. “I’m so enormously in love with you and I’m going to Toronto.” </p><p>Anne blinked, trying to clear her mind, but it was full to the brim with his confession. Her knees nearly gave out their strength, and she lurched in a rising tide of bliss. Misinterpreting her reaction as fear, Gilbert took a step forward and searched her eyes. </p><p>“Please don’t be alarmed. I would never pressure you to feel or be anything you refuse to be. But the things you <em> do </em>want, Anne, I want you to have them. Selfishly maybe, I want you to want me.” He reached for her hands, finding them already open to him. “I had no hope of it when I left Avonlea, but then Diana found me on the train. I knew I’ve been acting like a fool, but I had no idea how much. Anne, you need to know I’m not engaged. I won’t ever be—that is, unless one day...”  </p><p>Anne whispered his name, a soft plea to give her a moment to process, but Gilbert shook his head, taking her quiet tone as trepidation. </p><p>“I don’t expect your favor—wouldn’t <em> dream </em> of expecting it since I’ve done nothing that warrants I should deserve it,” he added on a self-deprecating scoff. With a deep breath, he let his honesty show on his face. “I just came because I need you to know that you are <em> exquisite</em>. I’ve always thought so and I always will.” </p><p>All Anne’s words were gone. In a blissful instant, all that was left was an overwhelming, incoherent hurricane of feeling. It turned her insides to nectar from the head down, tempering down time and making the slow moments sweet. </p><p>Gilbert wasn’t sure what to make of her silence. He searched her wide eyes for any reason to hope and waited several moments into the quiet before dropping her hands. He gave a stiff nod and began to turn away. </p><p>“That’s that, then.” </p><p>But for Anne, it was far from over. Her euphoric haze dissipated the second his warmth was gone, but her fingers brushed his sleeve out of instinct as he moved. Before Gilbert could even take a step, she seized his face and kissed him, soft and desperate. </p><p>Gilbert dissolved. Out of instinct, he let his hands tangle into the curls of her hair and gently pull loose the knots. His lips were soft as they moved beneath hers, yielding and honeyed. He was the first to pull back, an awed grin turning his face gold in the sunlight. It was his turn to have a mind of jumbled words. </p><p>“Diana said...but I thought she might be mistaken...but you—” Something in Anne’s eyes changed that silenced the words on his tongue. “Anne, I have to know. Do you truly have feelings for me?” </p><p>Anne had half a mind to kiss him again, but she was a lover of words and a lover of him. If there ever was a time to string together poetry and use the lavish words of her heart, it was now. Yet, she found the songlike verse that swelled in heart articulated itself much simpler than she expected. Reverently, Anne uttered, “I do. I love you.” </p><p>His reaction was everything she was hoping for, everything hers had been moments ago. With a cry of delight, he took Anne into his arms and pressed her against him. Her arms found their way around his neck and she laughed in delight. </p><p>“I never got your letter,” he confessed into her hair, running his fingers along the soft curls. Anne leaned back enough to peer up into his face, delighting in the lovesickness she found there.  “I should’ve written a letter or my own. Maybe then we would’ve faced less misunderstandings.”</p><p>Anne hummed. “A small part of me believes I still would’ve found a way to complicate matters. What would you have written?”  </p><p>“<em>Dear Anne, thanks for the pen and good luck at Queens </em>.” </p><p>She laughed, fighting the urge to lay her head back on his shoulder. </p><p>“No, really!” </p><p>Gilbert pondered this for a moment. His hand reached for the constellations on her cheek, caressing each freckle as if they were tempered flecks of gold.</p><p>“<em>Dear Anne, I write to you a fool in man’s clothes for mistaking everything for so long. You are the true, the only object of my affection and my desire </em>. And then I might say something about how you couldn’t have possibly known that smacking your slate over my head would be the start of me falling hopelessly in love with you.” He embellished his statement with a kiss at the corner of her mouth. “What would you have replied?” </p><p>“Oh, I wouldn’t have replied anything,” Anne answered. “I would have rushed across the fields between our houses to see you, and then I suppose the following events would’ve been much as they’ve been today.”</p><p>“And if I were already gone?”</p><p>“Then I would’ve even taken a train to Toronto to see you.” </p><p>Gilbert’s expression dimmed slightly. </p><p>“Toronto is much more far away than it sounds,” he lamented. </p><p>“I know where Toronto is, thank you very much,” Anne teased. “You’ll write?” </p><p>“Every day if you want me to.” </p><p>He might’ve said more, but the clambering of a carriage up the lane of Mrs. Blackmore’s house interrupted him from progressing further. Gilbert squeezed Anne’s hand with a regretful expression. It was not the parting either of them wanted, but the pain of saying goodbye was soothed by the knowledge that it would not be the <em> last </em> goodbye. A mere week until delivered letters, a few months until they could be reunited. The time would pass like seconds when there was so much life to be lived. </p><p>With one last smile, Anne kissed the inside of Gilbert’s palm and whispered, “Come home someday, Gilbert Blythe.” </p><p>His eyes were all the colors of Avonlea blended together. </p><p>“I will.” </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I hope you enjoyed it! Please let me know what you thought. I also wanted to let you all know that if you need a friend during these social distancing times, please don't hesitate to reach out. I'm on tumblr! ~ @royalcordelia</p></blockquote></div></div>
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